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Police academy is hard these days
National police forces perform acrobatic skills during a parade marking the 41st anniversary of Djibouti's independence.
Image:
Houssein Hersi/AFP

Six things about SA you need to know

Staff pay takes most of Gauteng education budget

About three-quarters of the budget allocated to the Gauteng department of education will go to paying employees. This was revealed in the 2018/19 budget vote‚ which was delivered by Gauteng education MEC Panyaza Lesufi. In the 2018/19 budget‚ education received a total budget of R45.2-billion‚ which was an above-inflation increase of 10.7% or R4.3-billion. Of the total budget‚ R33.7-billion‚ or 75%‚ went to compensation of employees. This reflects an increase of 11.5% (R3.4-billion) when compared to the previous financial year.

‘K-word businessman’ must wait to hear fate

Politically connected businessman Peter-Paul Ngwenya will find out next Thursday whether his application for a discharge from the case he is facing – which revolves around his a fight with Investec CEO designate Fani Titi – has been successful. The Randburg Magistrate’s Court heard arguments on Thursday from Ngwenya for a discharge in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, which states that a court may return a verdict of not guilty if it is of the opinion that there is no evidence that the accused committed the offences in question. This application was opposed by the prosecution‚ which said Ngwenya had a case to answer. Ngwenya is facing two charges of contravening protection orders obtained against him by Titi and business partner Aqeel Patel. He also faces a charges of crimen injuria for referring to Titi as a “QwaQwa k****r” in an SMS.

Suspended SAA CFO hints at further action

Suspended South African Airways chief financial officer Phumeza Nhantsi has hinted at further action following the finding by an internal disciplinary inquiry that she and suspended former CEO Musa Zwane were guilty of gross financial misconduct‚ negligence and dishonesty. Inquiry chairperson Nazeer Cassim SC recommended that Nhantsi and Zwane be summarily dismissed by SAA for their actions in relation to a tender with BNP Capital to source R15-billion in debt consolidation funds at a success fee of R256-million. The deal was stopped after media reports. SAA could have undertaken the deal for R85-million. Nhantsi has denied the allegations and argued they are baseless. On Thursday she said that "because this matter is far from over I believe it is inappropriate to make any further comment at this time”.

Everyone at schools to be vetted, says MEC Lesufi

Gauteng education MEC Panyaza Lesufi says school governing body members will now be vetted to ensure the safety of children at schools. He made the announcement when he presented his department’s 2018/19 budget. "Our argument is that anyone that comes close to our children must be vetted. Whether you are a gardener‚ teacher‚ a member of the (governing body) … "We are now soliciting various state-owned databases such as the Equality Court … every judgment that is made there‚ we must have access (to it) to make sure that the person (found guilty) is not in our school system,” Lesufi said after tabling his budget. In recent years Gauteng has seen a number of incidents of racism‚ sexual assault and violence‚ which Lesufi wants to address.

Petrol hike could have been worse: AA

This was according to the Automobile Association on Thursday as it released its fuel price outlook for July. Petrol prices were expected to rise by 26 cents a litre next month‚ diesel by 24 cents and illuminating paraffin by 20 cents - in spite of South Africans being “thrown a lifeline” by declining oil prices. “Without oil's decline‚ the fuel price hike for July would have been far higher‚” the AA said‚ particularly as the rand continued to lose value against the dollar. “The average rand/dollar exchange rate used to calculate the basic fuel price has slipped in a virtually straight line since the start of June. The month began with the rand at around R12.65 to the dollar‚ but the average currently stands at nearly R13.30. Fortunately‚ international oil prices have retreated at a similar rate‚ resulting in a fairly moderate fuel price increase outlook for July.”

Malema makes Lekota see red at land hearings

Congress of the People leader Mosiuoa Lekota has criticised the land expropriation public hearings process in Limpopo‚ saying it is being “stage managed” by the EFF. He was speaking on the sidelines of the hearings into potential amendments to Section 25 of the constitution in Mokopane on Thursday. Parliament's Joint Constitutional Review Committee is engaging the public on a review of the constitution to enable the expropriation of land in the public interest without compensation. Lekota said parliamentarians could not allow EFF leader Julius Malema to pick who could address the committee during the hearings. Lekota and Malema got into an altercation on Wednesday after the Cope leader confronted him about his "interference". Lekota also questioned why committee chairperson Vincent Smith had allowed Malema to co-lead the hearings. On Wednesday‚ Malema had to intervene repeatedly to calm the crowds in Marble Hall‚ also assisting Smith with the selection of the speaking order.

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no two neighbors are the same
A woman walks along a passageway past apartments at a building in Tokyo.
Image:
Martin Bureau / AFP

SIX THINGS ABOUT THE WORLD YOU NEED TO KNOW

Guides make mountain of cash with chopper scam

Tourists hiking in Nepal’s Himalayan mountains are being pressured into costly helicopter evacuations at the first sight of trouble by guides linked to powerful brokers who are making a fortune on “unnecessary rescues”, industry insiders say. Dodgy operators are scamming tens of thousands of dollars from insurance companies by making multiple claims for a single chopper ride or pushing trekkers to accept airlifts for minor illnesses, an AFP investigation has revealed. In other cases, trekking guides, promised commission if they get tourists to return by chopper, are offering helicopter rides to tired hikers as a quick way home, but billing them as rescues to insurance companies. - AFP

Two more bishops quit in sex abuse scandal

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of two more Chilean bishops caught up in the country’s sexual abuse scandal, the Vatican said, bringing to five the number he has accepted so far. The bishops were heads of the dioceses of Rancagua and Talca and the pope named commissioners to run them. He accepted resignations of three bishops on June 11. Last month, all of Chile’s 34 bishops offered to resign en masse after a meeting with the pope over allegations of a cover-up of sexual abuse in the country. - Reuters

Sniffles snuff out naked island bliss

Masafumi Nagasaki was living in a state of perfect bliss, spending his days wondering naked and alone on a Pacific island, until reports of his ill-health prompted police to take him away from his Robinson Crusoe-like existence and forced him to rejoin mainstream Japanese society. Nagasaki, 82, had lived a simple life on the remote island of Sotobanari for nearly 30 years, after moving there to escape the hamster wheel of urban life, but has now been forced to leave despite insisting he wanted to die there. Documentary maker Alvaro Cerezo said he “probably only had the flu”. The man who came to be nicknamed "the naked hermit" was coy about his background, although he did indicate that he had been married and had two children. - The Daily Telegraph

Six albinos to contest Malawi elections

Six candidates living with albinism will contest the elections next year, a rights groups has said, defying hostility in Malawi where 21 albinos have been murdered since 2014. “One of the issues contributing to the violation of our rights is our invisibility,” said the Association of People with Albinism, which confirmed Tuesday that six members would contest either parliamentary or council seats. Apart from violence and discrimination, albinos are also exposed to eye problems and a heightened risk of skin cancer. Assocition director Overstone Kondowe sai the aim was to “put some of our members in decision-making organs”. - AFP

Site has hard-on for the hard of hearing

Pornhub, the world’s world's most-visited porn site, has launched closed captioning for the benefit of viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing. The company says it will start by uploading captions for more than 1,000 of its most-viewed videos, reports Gizmodo. These would be selected from the straight, "popular with women", gay, bisexual, and transsexual categories. The clips would reportedly come with "descriptive and interpretive" text, including dialogue and "non-dialogue" sounds, and would help viewers tell who is speaking as well as identify changes in emotion. - Staff reporter